Elie Saab’s haute eyewear collection really is a delight full of eastern promise retaining the Maison’s luxurious reputation for innate elegance that has evoked the spirit of Arabian Nights and the mystery of black magic so famously depicted in old Middle Eastern fairytales for nearly four decades. Famed for carrying a message of subliminal freedom, merging the values of the Middle East with the modern standards of the West the designer’s incredible gowns are a veritable ode to Princesses of fiction and reality the world over.

Middle Eastern sartorial traditions have long been an influence on Western couture. From Yves Saint Laurent’s chic kaftans of the 60’s to Givenchy’s gold burka of the millennium, countless fashion houses have defined the glamour of the east over the decades but it’s Lebanese couturier Elie Saab who really understands the way Arab women live and dress.

Saab loves to declare his designs are about glorifying women and admits a desire to dress them and make them feel and look elegant. He successfully dressed Queen Rania of Jordan for her coronation in 1999 proving he can deliver the fairytale dream when it comes to the real deal haute couture experience. Reportedly, one of his thickly embellished gowns embroidered with emeralds and diamonds sold for nearly £2 million but despite his legend, gowns made by the couture genius aren’t exclusively for royalty. The legions of loyal clients and fashion insiders to the global glitterati are also proud to be his ambassadors.

Now the self-made couturier allows us a peep through his lens on international glamour with the launch of a new bespoke capsule collection of sunglasses. The overtly feminine aesthetic of haute styles and romantic crystal-encrusted frames are certainly a fit for any type of Princess.

Born in Beirut in ‘64, by age of nine Saab had already began honing his couture skills by cutting patterns out of newspapers and sewing together anything he could utilize from his mother’s closet. A lack of design schools in Lebanon led to him serving a short stint studying in Paris but already highly skilled and determined he opened his own fashion label in his home city at just 18 years old. His debut show at the Casino du Liban was well received and quickly the boy from Beirut became known as the leading haute couturier in the Middle East with his atelier client book filling up fast with names off the Arab A-list – a market that makes up approximately one third of the global haute couture clientele.

Major public recognition beyond the Middle East first came in 2002 when actress Halle Berry attended the Academy Awards to collect the Best Actress Oscar for her role in Monster Ball. The actress stunned the world wearing Elie Saab. Already established Elie Saab was far from arriving like a bolt from the blue but by becoming the first Middle Eastern designer to dress an Oscar winner it appeared this groundbreaking talent was fresh off the block.

Ever since the iconic moment Halle Berry won Best Actress at the 2002 Oscars and make her now legendary acceptance speech, the red carpet has been embracing Elie Saab’s ‘best-dressed’. An endless line of the world’s most beautiful women elegantly attending the world’s most prestigious red carpet’s draped in the designer’s couture. Angelina Jolie, Beyonce, Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Charlie Theron & Gywneth Paltrow have also all showed up wearing Elie Saab couture.

Although Elie Saab Maison has seen expansion into the ready to wear and accessories markets, haute couture still remains first priority. A mainstay on the Paris Haute Couture schedule since 2000, Elie Saab was admitted as a member correspondent of the Chambre Syndicale in 2006, the highest honour bestowed upon any non-French designer. Previously in 1997 he became the first non-Italian designer to become a member of the Italian Camera Nazionale della Moda.

Selected pieces from the Elie Saab haute couture eyewear capsule collection are available now at Harvey Nichols Edinburgh with prices starting from £680. www.harveynichols.com

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